1982 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1982 (Wikisource)
Geography
Area
186,480 km2 (including 1,295 km 2 of Israeli-occupied territory); 48% arable, 29% grazing, 2% forest, 21% desert
Coastline
193 km
Land boundaries
2,196 km (1967) (excluding occupied area 2,156 km) WATER
Limits of territorial waters (claimed)
35 nm
People and Society
Ethnic divisions
90.3% Arab; 9.7% Kurds, Armenians, and other
Labor force
2.2 million; 32% agriculture, 29% industry (including construction), 39% miscellaneous services; majority unskilled; shortage of skilled labor
Language
Arabic, Kurdish, Armenian; French and English widely understood
Literacy
about 40%
Nationality
noun—Syrian(s); adjective—Syrian
Organized labor
5% of labor force
Population
9,423,000 (July 1982), average annual growth rate 3.4%
Religion
74% Sunni Muslim, 16% Alawites, Druze, and other Muslim sects, 10% Christians of various sects
Government
Branches
executive powers vested in President and Council of Ministers; legislative power rests in the People's Assembly; seat of power is the Ba'th Party Regional (Syrian) Command
Capital
Damascus
Communists
mostly sympathizers, numbering about 5,000
Elections
People's Assembly election November 1981; presidential election February 1978 Political parties and leaders: ruling party is the Arab Socialist Resurrectionist (Ba'th) Party; the "national front" cabinet is dominated by Ba'thists but includes independents and members of the Syrian Arab Socialist Party (ASP), Arab Socialist Union (ASU), Socialist Unionist Movement, and Syrian Communist Party (SCP)
Government leader
President Hafiz al-ASSAD
Legal system
based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; constitution promulgated in 1973; legal education at Damascus University and University of Aleppo; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction National holiday: Independence Day, 17 April
Member of
Arab League, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMCO, IMF, IOOC, IPU, ISCON, ITU, IWC—International Wheat Council, NAM, OAPEC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WSG, WTO
Official name
Syrian Arab Republic
Other political or pressure groups
non-Ba'th parties have little effective political influence; Communist Party ineffective; greatest threat to Assad regime lies in factionalism in the military; conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood
Political subdivisions
13 provinces and city of Damascus administered as separate unit
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
republic; under leftwing military regime since March 1963
Economy
Agriculture
main crops—cotton, wheat, barley and tobacco; sheep and goat raising; self-sufficient in most foods in years of good weather
Budget
1981—revenues $3.5 billion (excluding Arab aid payments), expenditures $7.8 billion
Electric power
1,971,500 kW capacity (1980); 3.638 billion kWh produced (1980), 406 kWh per capita
Exports
$2.11 billion (f.o.b., 1980); petroleum, textiles and textile products, tobacco, fruits and vegetables, cotton
Fiscal year
calendar year
GDP
$12.9 billion (1980), $960 per capita; real GDP growth rate 9.7% (1980)
Imports
$4.01 billion (f.o.b., 1980); machinery and metal products, textiles, fuels, foodstuffs
Major industries
textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco; petroleum—166,000 b/d production (1980), 220,000 b/d refining capacity
Major trade partners
exports—Italy, Romania, US, USSR; imports—Iraq, West Germany, Italy, France
Monetary conversion rate
3.925 Syrian pounds=US$1 (official rate; a parallel market was established in April 1981 with the rate determined by the government guided by supply and demand)
Communications
Airfields
53 total, 49 usable; 23 with permanent-surface runways; 21 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 3 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
14 major transport aircraft
Highways
16,939 km total; 12,051 km paved, 2,625 km gravel or crushed stone, 2,263 km improved earth
Inland waterways
672 km; of little importance
Pipelines
1,304 km crude oil; 515 km refined products
Ports
3 major (Tartus, Latakia, Baniyas), 2 minor
Railroads
1,543 km total; 1,281 km standard gauge, 262 km narrow gauge (1.050 m)
Telecommunications
good international and fair domestic service; 193,000 telephones (2.3 per 100 popl.); 9 AM, no FM, and 21 TV stations; 1 Indian Ocean satellite station
Military and Security
Military budget
for fiscal year ending 31 December 1981, $2,389 million; 31% of central government budget
Military manpower
males 15-49, 2,040,000; 1,145,000 fit for military service; about 102,000 reach military age (19) annually